Journal Entry 1 by catsalive from Rooty Hill, New South Wales Australia on Monday, February 28, 2005

Journal Entry 2 by catsalive from Rooty Hill, New South Wales Australia on Wednesday, March 16, 2005

Journal Entry 3 by gypsyrose02 from Byford, Western Australia Australia on Tuesday, April 12, 2005

received today. will read asap. 

Journal Entry 4 by gypsyrose02 from Byford, Western Australia Australia on Saturday, April 23, 2005

im really sorry catsalive. i just couldnt get into this. i was really looking forward to it, but its just not my cup of tea. (in saying that i would still like to give your other ring, by the same author a go). i have so much to read at the mo, that im going to keep this moving. i have the address of cathyinoz and will post it next pay day. thanks for including me though. 

Journal Entry 5 by gypsyrose02 from Byford, Western Australia Australia on Thursday, April 28, 2005

going out to cathyinoz tomorrow. 

Journal Entry 6 by cathyinoz from Warrandyte, Victoria Australia on Monday, May 02, 2005

Thanks gypsyrose02 and catsalive. It arrived today in the post. I have one and a half bookrings ahead of it but will be onto this asap. 

Journal Entry 7 by cathyinoz from Warrandyte, Victoria Australia on Sunday, May 22, 2005

Oh dear, I too have tried and failed. I feel like I'm wading through molasses. I can't make any headway with this. I think this may be a book to read when I am older.
Thanks you for the opportunity to try it out tho'.
I'll PM tramgirl and get her address.

23/05/05 -- Tramgirl now has her own copy so asked to be skipped. Will PM sherlockfan

13/06/05 Update -- Sherlockfan is o/s, Feryl is snowed under and moved to bottom of the list. Awaiting a reply from Alectoness. 

Journal Entry 8 by Alectoness from Wimbledon, Greater London United Kingdom on Monday, July 18, 2005

Book arrived in the mail today - thanks cathyinoz! Am just going to finish off "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and then I'll get started on this one. 

Journal Entry 9 by Alectoness from Wimbledon, Greater London United Kingdom on Thursday, July 28, 2005

Many thanks to catsalive for starting this ring - so many people have recommended "Love in the Time of Cholera" to me that I'm glad I've finally had the chance to read it.

I found it quite difficult to get into as well. I think this was mainly because I didn't know who the story 'belonged to'. At first I thought it was going to be the story of Jeremiah de Saint-Amour, the photographer and chess player who committed suicide; then, of Dr Juvenal Urbino, the husband and doctor. So it came as a shock when Florentino Ariza suddenly appeared and took over the narrative from page 50.

While it took me a long time to read, I enjoyed the overall feeling of it and the mix of the different types of love throughout the lifespan. I laughed out loud out Dr Urbino's statement on marriage:

"an absurd invention that could exist only by the infinite grace of God. It was against all scientific reason for two people who hardly knew each other, with no ties at all between them, with different characters, different upbringings, and even different genders, to suddenly find themselves committed to living together, to sleeping in the same bed, to sharing two destinies that perhaps were fated to go in opposite directions".

Read this out to my fiancé and now he wants it read at our wedding ;o)

Anyway, I have Shylockfan's address now, so I'll get this book into the mail later today. Thanks again for letting me read this.

UPDATE (24 August): Just for the record, my wedding's not till September 2006, but I'll keep you updated as to whether or not that quote's used... 

Journal Entry 10 by Sherlockfan from Upper Hutt, Wellington Province New Zealand on Wednesday, August 10, 2005

Thanks for this book. It has taken a while to register as I've been overseas and only arrived back Monday 8th August. Found 5 books waiting for me with the kind friend who was checking our Post Office mail box during our absence.
Now have a TBR mountain with this one plus the ones that I couldn't resist buying while away, so it may be a while.
Do add to these journal entries if you do in fact have it read at your wedding Alectoness. The quote does seem really suitable for a wedding speech and should bring a mixture of gasps, shudders and laughs. 

Journal Entry 11 by Sherlockfan from Upper Hutt, Wellington Province New Zealand on Tuesday, August 23, 2005

Well, I persevered to page 163, despite my rule of dropping them by page 60 if I'm not gripped. I sort of liked what I did read although the presentation on each page was rather dense and a little off-putting. I do like paragraphs even if there is little conversation.
I've such a mountain still waiting that I'm giving up the struggle, having enjoyed what I did read but now losing interest.

I'll pm reyl.

Alectoness - have you had your wedding yet? Don't forget to let us know whether you did indeed have the quoted passage read, and the reaction to it. 

Journal Entry 12 by Feryl from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Wednesday, September 07, 2005

Just received in the mail from Sherlockfan in NZ. Thanks! :o) 

Journal Entry 13 by Feryl from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Wednesday, October 05, 2005

Having read everybody else's comments and seen how many of you gave up on this book, I was determined to see it through before I even received it - I'm contrary like that! I enjoyed it, but considering it's not a very big book it was really slow going - it took me at least 3 weeks to read, I think largely because it's not the sort of story that keeps dragging you back to find out what happens next. It's an interesting story... some of the characters were quite complex - you think you've got them pegged, then they do something you don't expect and you see another side of them. Throughout most of the book I felt unsure of how old the characters were at any given point, or what year it was, and I was never sure what country the book was set in... was it Mexico??

One thing that I found really disconcerting was the way that the author nearly always referred to sex as "making love", or simply "love", even when he was talking about rape, prostitution, "emergency love" between the General Manager and one of the office girls, or the frankly rather creepy relationship between a 14-year-old girl and her 74-year-old guardian!

A very unusual book... not everybody's cup of tea, obviously, but I'm glad I read it!

miss-jo has asked to read this before it goes back to catsalive, so I'll pass it on to her... 

Journal Entry 14 by miss-jo from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Tuesday, October 18, 2005

Feryl passed this to me while I was in the middle of moving (thanks for the help hon), so my reading time has been severely limited for the last few weeks. But I picked it up on Monday and finished it in two nights. The dreamy, almost feverish, quality of the reminiscences was appropriate and I liked most of the characters more or less. But I agree with Feryl that his definition of love was fairly loose - including everything from romanticism to habit. And there were two things which really squicked me out and spoilt the book for me. One was the creepy paedophilia (even worse, the way it ended), the other was the woman searching everywhere for her rapist because she loved him!

Catsalive, I'll pm you to see how to return this. And thank you. 

Journal Entry 15 by Fleebo from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Tuesday, November 01, 2005

Oops, forgot to journal that I have received this. Thanks very much - but it's going to be quite a while before I get to it. (quite apart from the FOUR bookrings currently on their way to me.) 

Journal Entry 16 by Pixette from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Saturday, June 17, 2006

Received at the last sydney meetup. 

Journal Entry 17 by Pixette from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Sunday, November 26, 2006

This was a surprising book. I really didn't expect the end to be as it was. That isn't a bad thing. In fact I found it refreshing to be surprised.

I love the poetic writing style. Not one to be read fast but slowly and savoured.

I find it fascinating for a character to hang onto one singular emotion for such a long time unchanged. I have seen this before in Balzac's Cousin Bette - but her emotion was revenge not love. Interestingly though I kept thinking of her.

thanks Catsalive for being so patient. I'll put it in the post back to you this week. 

Journal Entry 18 by Pixette from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Sunday, November 26, 2006

Forgot to give it a rating

9 out of 10 I reckon. I'd thoroughly recommend it. 

Journal Entry 19 by Pixette at postal release in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia -- Controlled Releases on Sunday, December 03, 2006

Released 5 yrs ago (11/30/2006 UTC) at postal release in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia -- Controlled Releases

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

RELEASE NOTES:

Posted back to catsalive 

Journal Entry 20 by catsalive from Rooty Hill, New South Wales Australia on Monday, December 04, 2006

Thanks for sending it home Pixette, and thanks everyone for participating. I guess it's my turn to read it now. 

Journal Entry 21 by catsalive from Rooty Hill, New South Wales Australia on Friday, August 03, 2007

It''s taken me 3 weeks to get through this although I''m not sure why as I enjoyed it while I was reading it. I suspect it''s a combination of no long commute & the fact that I couldn''t read very much at a sitting.

I found it all quite humorous, we weren''t meant to take it seriously were we? I don''t think so, anyway. Some of the names amused me - Aunt Escolástica, Lotario Thugut (& he was, wasn''t he? a lothario). This line made me chuckle out loud: "....or requiring evening wear and chamois gloves in the operating room because it was taken for granted that elegance was an essential condition for asepsis."

I was relieved when Fermina & Florentino finally got it together, they really did deserve each other, both need a good slap up the back of the head.

Worth the effort & now it''s heading off to Lizabeth86. 

Journal Entry 22 by catsalive at A fellow BXer in Aussie Post, Book Relay -- Controlled Releases on Friday, August 10, 2007

Released 4 yrs ago (8/10/2007 UTC) at A fellow BXer in Aussie Post, Book Relay -- Controlled Releases

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

Journal Entry 23 by Lizabeth86 from Middletown, Connecticut USA on Monday, October 15, 2007

Received today. Thanks Cats.